Texas 21st District Focus: Travis, Kerr, Real, Bandera, Kendall, Comal and Blanco Counties

Texas' 21st Congressional District:




For all my Texas Readers: CRITICAL: Three things you can do to help save Texas public schools...I will never understand why Republicans hate education so much. It has been shown over and over that strong education programs reduce poverty, crime and drug use, yet Republicans seem to prefer poverty, crime and drug use to supporting education


UPCOMING EVENT: This is a rally that hopes to draw from all over Texas. I hope some of my readers from Travis and surrounding counties can make it.

It's Raining in Texas Rally
03/12/2011 (All day)
The State Capitol Building in Austin, Texas.

For your GPS: 1100 Congress Avenue, Austin, Texas, 78701

Dear Fellow Educators, Students, Parents, Administrators and any Texan, who cares deeply about education and the future of Texas,

We all appear to be at the mercy of our governor and the Texas State Legislature. Governor Perry's and the legislature's unwillingness to tap into the 9.4 billion dollar "Rainy Day" fund is mind boggling. If it's not raining in Texas now, then it's never going to rain!

The proposed 5 to 10 billion dollar cut in education funding will result in millions of dollars of budget cuts for each school district of Texas; hundreds of millions of dollars in Houston ISD alone. Those of us in education know how detrimental these cuts will be. We cannot allow this to happen!

The state of Texas is already ranked 43rd nationwide in per-student expenditures. With the proposed cuts, we will land near the bottom! We understand the need to balance the budget, but the education budget should be sacred in Texas as we are already woefully underfunded at the current levels. Instead, the legislature and Mr. Perry would rather mortgage the future of our kids and our state by balancing the budget on the backs of our students and teachers.

In Governor Perry's last re-election campaign, he claimed that Texas was "open for business." Well, we are on track to have a less educated workforce that will not serve to lure any businesses to Texas and will not promote a brighter future for Texans.

How much more can we accept as students, parents and educators? Should we remain quiet and watch our Texas education system be destroyed? How many years will it take for funding to return just to the inadequate levels that we have now?

Recent polls show that 70% of Texans oppose any cuts to public education.

The time to be heard is NOW! This is the rationale for the Rally in front of the state capitol building on March 12th.

Will YOU be there? Can you sacrifice a weekend for the future of education in Texas?

We hope to have representation from every single school and district in the state of Texas! This rally is not our only recourse, but it IS our first step in securing a first class education for our Texas children and changing the status quo.

For more info: www.itsrainingintexas.com

Here is the tentative schedule for the day of the rally.

10:00am (approx.) March from Auditorium Shores up Congress Avenue to the Capitol
(about 1 1/2 miles), arriving between 11 and 11:30.
11:30 Pre-rally activities, including a music performance and pre-rally speakers
Noon: Main rally begins with guest speakers
2:00pm Main rally ends.
2:00-5:00pm Mobilizing sessions for community and school leaders at First United Methodist Church Conference Center, right across the street from the Capitol. These sessions will be aimed at equipping folks to go back and continue to lead effective efforts to support the changes we want to see.

We are excited to announce that we are joining forces with

Save Texas Schools for one HUGE rally!

Please visit their website for detailed information about the rally and for important information on what you can do NOW to make a difference!

www.savetxschools.org

Regardless of if you attend the rally or not, there are steps you can take to fight for Texas kids and for a better future for Texas. Please consider the list below as a model for all sorts of citizen-action that you ,and the people you know, have the ability to complete. Here is the Save Texas Education Funding site that is the source of this list.

(The good folks at Save Texas Education Funding want you to know that they are a non-partisan group and that they seek the support of all Texans.)

1. Write to your legislators by mail or fax using a letter template

2. Email your legislators using the same letter template

3. Call your legislators (this will only take you 5 minutes or less per call)

4. Contact the members of the Education and Appropriations Committees. If you mail a letter to the Committee Chairman, you can include a sticky note asking the Aide to distribute a copy of your letter to all members of the Committee.

5. Meet with your legislators

6. Sign Petitions & host Block Walks in your neighborhood to gather petition signatures

7. Attend the “Save Texas Schools Rally” in Austin on March 12th

8. Attend the Legislative Day in Austin on Monday, March 14th (free bus transportation, lunch and training will be provided, but no children permitted to attend): http://www.texasedfunding.com/home/activities/legislative-meeting-day (Emailsusan.deigaard@gmail.com to RSVP by March 1st)

9. Join an Email Distribution List for updates by emailing TexasEdFunding@gmail.com. Join the Facebook group: Texans for Public Education Funding

10. Ask your children to write letters to Governor Perry and Legislators

And Finally: Email everyone you know (even outside Texas) to inform them of the issues and ask for them to take the above actions as well. Spread the word to Save Texas Schools!

Also, don’t forget the protest against the state budget to be held at Houston City Hall at 4:30 PM on Tuesday, March 15.

We all have the ability to attend a public meeting, attend or organize a protest, write or call an elected official, talk to friends and family, start a blog, donate money, write a letter to the editor, volunteer for candidates and causes you value, and even run for office yourself. It is up to you to do the work of freedom and to make progress for the future in our state of Texas.


Here are some Democratic groups and resources in the 21st Congressional District:

Kerr County Democrats:

Our monthly meeting is at 6:15 pm, the 3rd Tuesday of each month usually at the Santo Coyote Cafe, next to the Best Western on Sidney Baker (aka Hwy 16) near Interstate 10. For more information call Brenda Harrison, PhD, County Chair 830.257.2611, or email brenda4179@gmail.com

Texas Democratic Women, Kerr Cty Chapter, meet the first Tuesday of the month, Sept-May, at the Mount Wesley Conference Ctr, 610 Methodist Encampment Rd.
For more information about TDW, call Stephanie Ertel, President, 830.895.9827

Tuesday morning breakfast: 7:00 am at Inn of the HIlls (1001 Junction Hwy near the intersection of Hwy 27 and Harper Rd.)

Friday Luncheon at El Compadre at the Ingram Dam Center, 11:00 am every Friday. This is a casual gathering for great Mexican food and great political discussion.


Democrats of Comal County:
You can join the Yahoo group of the Comal County Democrats here.

First Tuesday of the month at 7 p.m. General meeting.
New Braunfels Public Library
700 Common Street

To join as a member sign up here.

For more info: Call 830 608-0881 or email: info@democratsofcomalcounty.org


Bandera County Democrats: Contact County Chair Jill Peterson, tel. 830.688.9642, email: mac159@my.utsa.edu

Blanco County Democrats: Contact County Chair Barbara Hudson, tel. 830.868.4219, email: bhudson1944@sbcglobal.net

Kendall County Democrats: Contact County Chair John Weir, tel. 830.755.2387, email: johnweir@gvtc.com

Real County Democrats: Contact County Chair Barbara Veldhuizen, tel. 830.232.6752, email: baveld@gmail.com


ALTERNATIVE ENERGY THROUGH BANDERA ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE:

If you want to support clean, safe, AMERICAN energy that produces jobs right here in America, you can buy wind energy through Bandera Electric Cooperative's WindWorks Program:

By investing in another clean source of power, we are investing in our future. But perhaps most important, by taking a leadership role in supporting renewable energy, we are contributing to a healthier environment for this generation ... and the next.

BEC received an overwhelming response from our Members regarding purchasing renewable energy. At your request, we have purchased over 200% more wind energy than in years prior, resulting in a total of 20 million kilowatt-hours (kWh’s) being bought each year. For more information or to sign up for the BEC Wind Works, visit with a Member Accounts Representative at any BEC Business Office, call 866-226-3372, or download this application and fax or mail to:

Bandera Electric Cooperative
PO Box 667
Bandera, TX 78003
Fax: 830-460-3030

BIODIESEL IN THE 21ST DISTRICT:

I also want to highlight Biodiesel stations in and around the 21st District. Biodiesel is less polluting and has a smaller carbon footprint than regular diesel, and is produced right here in the USA. Biodiesel can be used in almost any diesel engine. Up to B20 (a 20 percent blend) any diesel engine, whether car or 18 wheeler or whatever, can use it. Above B20 some older engines may have problems, but newer engines should be ok.

Real Ale Brewing 231 San Saba Ct, Blanco TX, 78606, 830-833-2534, offers B50 (50% biodiesel), CASH CHECK FRIDAYS 2-5PM

Petry Pantry #31, 11102 W Loop 1604 N, San Antonio, TX, 78254, 210-521-8618, Offers B20 (good for ANY diesel engine), CREDIT OK 24 HRS

Petro Pantry #30, 1530 W Loop 1604 N, San Antonio, TX, 78251, 210-521-7698, Offers B20 (good for ANY diesel engine), CREDIT OK 24 HRS

Alamo Biodiesel, 519 Seguin St, San Antonio, TX, 78207, 210-638-9896, Offers B99, CASH/CHECK 8AM-5PM MON-FRI BUT CALL FIRST


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